Amazon Prime’s The Boys is trolling Elon Musk over the Twitter CEO’s decision to change the blue checkmark verification system the social media platform uses. On April 20th, Musk flipped the proverbial switch that took away blue “verified” checkmarks from thousands of users and initiated the new “Twitter Blue” system of users paying a monthly premium to keep a blue checkmark by their name. Well, there has been a wave of criticism and mockery over Twitter blue, and The Boys is getting in on the fun!
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Well… he can do what he wants 🤷 #TheBoys pic.twitter.com/acW2IyI2Kb
— Prime Video UK (@primevideouk) April 21, 2023
Fans are a bit of confusion about the meaning of this meme, but it’s a clear callback to The Boys Season 2, where Homelander attempted some seriously misguided parenting of his estranged son, Ryan. Homelander’s theory that Ryan is a godly being like his father didn’t pan out when he pushed the young boy off the roof of a house, to see him fly. Ryan hit the ground hard, as his father was clearly pushing him off the ledge before he was fully ready.
The joke then (if we must beat it to death) is The Boys trolling Elon Musk for launching Twitter Blue in a manner that almost dictates its failure to launch in a good way. That’s a fair assessment: Twitter Blue has not only been getting dragged on social media – Musk has arguably taken the entire iconography of the blue checkmark and flipped it around into being a badge of dishonor for users looking to be seen as “cool” or “authentic” on the platform. Moreover, there’s already evidence of continued misuse of the new verification system, with some users paying for verification and then using it as a way to impersonate official brands or officials. With so many users still murky about the new “blue, gray, and gold” checkmark system, identity fraud and misinformation are already so rampant that even the IRS has been a target.
The Boys trolling Musk is also a fair turnaround; the Twitter CEO has been accused of doing his own level of trolling using Twitter Blue. When the new verification system first launched, some very big celebrities that first spoke out against it (ICE T, William Shatner, Stephen King, and LeBron James) all retained their blue checkmarks, making it seem like they had caved and paid for the distinction. It’s since been established that’s not the case, so it’s hard to feel too badly at The Boys having fun with this situation.
The Boys Season 4 is done filming. It will stream on Prime Video.
